Home, sweet Delaware. Our last relocation for my job got us back in our home state in 2015. At this point we had been married for almost 5 years and decided that we had traveled most of our bucket list trips across the world and cashed out on our wise investment of our Charleston fixer upper… next step was to expand our little family. We got pregnant before my last relocation with high hopes of landing in Delaware near our families and it worked!

We searched and searched for our “forever” home, knowing that looking for our dream home would probably be near impossible (more on that later). We landed on this basic, early 90s, builder grade home in a nice neighborhood. At our biggest house yet, this 4800 sqft home has 5 bedrooms and 4 full bathrooms, and sits on half an acre. It was bigger than we intended, but it definitely checked off a lot of our needs and wants in a home.

The plan it to make this into our forever home, and that means upgrading it over time to fit our needs and dreams. So we don’t have a timeline on the renovations like with did with our South Carolina home, and they will most likely be much slower with a baby in the mix. But, we’re excited to continue brainstorming and working on it. Below, you’ll see mostly some before and maybe some “progress” pictures that we’ll be updating as we go along.

First Floor

Second Floor

Basement

Front Yard

Ideas:
- Update shutter color and front door color
- Replace the front door
- Rip out and replace all landscaping
- Add in some hardscaping pathways and landscaping walls on the slopes.
- Replace the roof when the time comes.
- Update to some prettier garage doors?
- Upgrade light fixtures.
- Add trench to the driveway for better water drainage
- Repave driveway

Before

Back Yard

Ideas:
- Rip out and replace most of the landscaping
- Fix the deck. Composite possibly?
- Fix the fence (make sure its completely Bailey proof long term!)
- Remove the satellite dish
- Furnish the Deck
- Add in a play set
- Add in a hardscaped patio near the parilla
- Replace back doors
- Upgrade light fixtures

Before

Foyer

Ideas:
- Replace front door to let more light in the foyer
- Replace all flooring
- Install a stair runner
- Install some type of wall treatment in the stair way

Before

Progress

Dining Room

Before

Living Room

Ideas:
- Rip out load bearing wall between the living room and family room to make it one large living room. This invovles replacing the HVAC and rerouting its many lines so this will be a big job!
- Install built ins along the back fireplace wall
- Replace all flooring

Before

Progress

Family Room

Ideas:
- Same as above
- Replace sliding glass door with larger set to let in more light?
- Refinish fire place

Before

Progress

Kitchen

Ideas:
- GUT JOB!! :)
- Replace all flooring, cabinetry and counter tops
- Create a new layout that extends the counters and cabinets into the living room with a peninsula for seating
- Attempt to rip out soffit area? Have to see whats hiding in there

Before

Guest Bedroom 1

Before

Progress

Office/Playroom

This room is somewhat completed. The foundation has been done, as the floors have been replaced, it got a fresh coat of paint, we upgraded the base molding and installed new curtains and blinds. Over time, we'd like to install some built ins for storage with some window seats on the far wall, find some cute desks for Dave and I to have some dueling desks near the window, and have the other half of the room be the playroom area. We'll eventually move the couch that's currently in the living room in here and I'm sure over time that Connor's toys will be taking over.

Before

Progress

Hallway

Before

Connor's Room

This is the first room in the house that we can currently call completed. Here, we installed and painted some pine tongue and grove boards on the back wall to create a shiplap look. We added molding upgrades around the window and door frames, added in larger base molding and crown molding. We replaced the ceiling fan, installed new wood floors, and fixed up a piece of family furniture to be the side table to the glider.

Before

Master Bedroom

Before

Progress

Master Bathroom

Ideas:
The layout of our second floor may allow for some expansion above our office/playroom. We're thinking of potentially finishing off that area and moving the master closet there so that we can make a larger master bathroom:
- Install a double vanity (or two separate ones!)
- Replace flooring and toilet
- Expand shower larger to space for two shower heads
- Install vent/fan
- Add in separate tub if there's room?

Before

Master Closet

See above

Before

Gym

Ideas:
- Finalize layout, decorate
- Work in some mudroom storage?

Before

Bar

Ideas:
- Install a wetbar with cabinetry to work in with David's "keezer"
- Add in a bar table
- Install some shelving for our growler collection